


Adjusting to Reality

by QuinnThePotato (PotatoQuinn)



Series: Adapting to the Ground AU [2]
Category: The 100 (TV)
Genre: F/F, F/M, M/M, Other Additional Tags to Be Added, Polyamory, here's where the clexa starts for real, in a few chapters, sequel to Adapting to the Ground
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2017-08-07
Updated: 2018-06-16
Packaged: 2018-12-12 04:30:42
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Graphic Depictions Of Violence
Chapters: 3
Words: 10,320
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/11729532
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/PotatoQuinn/pseuds/QuinnThePotato
Summary: Summaries are not my strong suit. But! This is the sequel to Adapting to the Ground! (read that first, or you'll be confused)Natalie and Anya share their bed with Raven, but will they ever decide to share their hearts as well?Anya is taken along with most of Skaikru by the Maunon while they're on their way back to TonDC, and Noah is hurt badly. Natalie struggles to readjust as she looks after her children as plans are started to go after the mountain to get their people back.





	1. Prologue

**Previously, in Adapting to the Ground:**

 

    The scene that met the warriors at Clarke’s camp was a desolate one. A few bodies lay scattered on the ground, tents strewn in pieces. The water trough was tipped over, the extra food they had procured dashed under footprints in the dirt. The Dropship itself was closed up, and Clarke almost fell on her face in the efforts to get off the horse she shared with Solan. She and the other four Sky People ran to the metal structure, pounding their fists on the surface in an attempt to rouse anyone who might be inside. 

    “Bellamy! Harper! Monroe! Anyone!” They continued until the door opened, and about twenty teenagers stared out at them. 

    “What happened?” Clarke stepped forward, looking the kids over. 

    Bellamy stepped forward, a cut on his temple and a darkening bruise on his neck. “They were so fast, we tried to save everyone. I-” he looked around at the bodies, his brows furrowing in confusion. “There were more than that left, I swear. We held the door open as long as we could.”

    “What. Happened.” Clarke repeated herself, stepping forward again with a deep frown.

    “Monsters. They attacked us out of nowhere,” Fox stepped forward, looking at her fallen comrades with a pained expression. “We thought they were like, bandits or something, like what Bellamy had told us about, but-” She shook her head. “They smelled like- and there was blood and flesh in their teeth.” She shuddered, wrapping her arms around herself.

    “ _ Ripas _ ,” Anya hissed, accessing the damage herself. 

    “We can’t stay here, what if they come back?” Clarke looked at the general, setting her jaw. “We’re defenseless. These things nearly destroyed-”

    “Calm yourself, Clarke Griffin. I agree with you. It is not safe for a bunch of children to stay by themselves when they cannot defend themselves against monsters. This time it was the  _ Ripas,  _ next time it will be the  _ Maunon. _ ” Anya looked at the blonde. “Gather your people and your things, we leave for Polis in an hour.”

 

**Earth; the Tower; Sometime in October, 2149**

 

Natalie scrubbed her hands over her face as she made her way from the Nightblood’s classroom to her own quarters, eager for a bath and some rest. She didn’t make it very far before a guard rushed towards her, his face grim. 

_ “Natali, Heda has sent for you. You are needed in the Healer’s House immediately.”  _ The big guy bowed his head a little, mostly to make sure his quiet message was heard.

Natalie nodded and spun on her heel, headed for the stairs that would get her to the ground faster than the lift. She jogged down them, making sure a handmaiden was headed towards her younger charges to keep an eye on them while she was gone. Once she got outside, the cool night air hit her cheeks and coloured them pink. The Healer’s House was right next to the Tower, a sort of clinic set up for multiple patients when carrying them up the stairs or up the lift would be too slow or difficult. Natalie made it there with time to spare, barely winded. She met Gustus outside and he directed her inside with a wave of his hand and a blank face.

_ “Heda?”  _ The redhead rushed inside and was stunned to see a flurry of activity. Healers rushed around with bloody and fresh bandages, poultices, water, and other supplies needed to tend to an injured army. Natalie felt the blood rush out of her face as she followed the masses to the main room, where nine different patients were in various states of suffering. “Noah!” She rushed forward towards the girl, only stopping when the Commander herself stepped in front of her. “What happened?”

She took a moment to look around, and recognized the others on the beds: Solan, Tris, Bellamy, Raven, Octavia, Lincoln, Cally, and Ron. All of them were being stitched and patched up, their faces either stoic or pinched in pain. Lexa shifted on her feet, and Natalie looked to her again. “They were attacked by the  _ Maunon  _ on their way back from the  _ Skaikru  _ camp. These are the only survivors.”

The air rushed out of Natalie as if she’d been punched in the gut by a  _ pauna _ , and she doubled over suddenly, clutching at her stomach. “No.”

_ “I am sorry, Natali, Onya has been taken,” _ the Commander was saying, her jaw clenched and her gaze somewhere above the heads of the people moving around them. 

“No!” Natalie stood up and pushed past the  _ Heda,  _ going to Noah and leaning over her. The young warrior-in-training was void of all colour, her eyes closed and breath shallow. There were cuts and slashes everywhere, and Natalie couldn’t tell where her child ended and the injuries started. Her hands hovered above the child, her vision blurring.  _ “Noa, my child…”  _ She glanced at the Healers and pointed at a round hole in her child’s arm. “You have to dig the metal out, or she will not heal properly.”

__ She was pulled away, a  _ fisa  _ mumbling in her ear about how they could do nothing more but wait, how they’d done everything they could for the moment, how they’d already dug the bullets out, and they just had to wait for Noah to wake. She yanked herself away and looked around, then went to Octavia, who was the only one of her friends to be conscious still. She hovered over her too, until the brunette looked up and noticed her. “Tally-”

Natalie surged forward and wrapped the girl in her arms, being careful of the cut on her side, the graze on her temple, and her arm in a sling. “Octavia, oh my God, what happened?”

“We were headed back, we were bringing everyone here, it wasn’t safe you know? But we were ambushed, people in hazmat suits with guns, they started to shoot at everyone and they were taking people.” The younger girl burrowed her face in the redhead’s shoulder, her words obscured slightly by sobs. “They were wearing gas masks too, and their skin blistered whenever we managed to cut through their suits. We fought so hard, Tally! They got Clarke and the others, they got- I’m sor-”

“Shhh, it is okay, O, you are okay,” Natalie whispered, smoothing a hand over her friend’s hair. Even as she comforted Octavia, though, she kept a steady eye on Noah, willing the child to wake up. 

 

Natalie stayed in the Healer’s House for as long as she could, but soon her duties within the Tower became prominent. She couldn’t focus on just Noah, Raven, Bellamy, Octavia, and the others that were hurt, she had to look after her younger children and make sure the Natblidas were cared for properly. She pulled a promise from a young apprentice to come and find her if anything changed in anyone, then headed out to go through the market before going back to the Tower. She bought a bag of sweets for Bran, Ana, and the Nightbloods at one stall, and a few bottles of a sweet drink for them to share. She picked up some colored pencils from a traveling merchant for Bran and a carved bear for Ana. She even went and bought a shiny new dagger for Noah, before she deemed her change purse empty enough. 

She stashed the three presents for her children in her room before heading out to search for them all. She found them in the room they studied in, with Titus. Bran and Ana were sitting in a corner with an open book between them, Bran pointing out the pictures and telling her what they were. As soon as she was spotted, however, both her children leaped up and ran to her. She knelt down and enveloped them in her arms, her eyes watering a bit. She held onto them tightly for as long as she could, until Ana began to squirm. 

_ “Nomi, what is wrong?”  _ Bran blinked at her with his dark eyes, solemn and confused. 

Natalie stood and pushed her hand through his curls, scooping Ana up onto her hip. She didn’t want to have this conversation, but she needed to, Bran at least was old enough to understand any whisperings that would no doubt drift through the city once the word was out that-

_“Come, I need to speak with you. You can come back to join the Natblidas when we are finished.”_ She reached for her hand and eyed Titus, who glowered back at her. Then she swept out the room, heading for the solace of the corridor. Once they were down the hall a bit, she waited a few people passed them, looks of pity on their faces. The redhead grimaced and knelt down in front of Bran once more, so she could look into his face. She set Ana down to stand next to her brother, and though the toddler fidgeted, she stayed where she was, as if she sensed the seriousness of the conversation. She took their tiny hands in hers and took a breath. _“You know how your Nomon and sister went to help the Skaikru?”_ Bran nodded, and then Ana did, copying him. _“They were attacked by the Maunon on their way back.”_ Her voice cracked, and she caressed the back of her children’s hands with her thumbs. 

Bran’s face twisted and his eyes watered.  _ “Wha- where are they?”  _ The question was hesitant, as if he dreaded the answer.

_ “Noa is in the Healer’s House. The Maunon took your Nomon.”  _ Natalie wrapped her arms around her son when he threw himself at her, sobbing hard. Ana started to cry as well, not understanding exactly what was going on. The former Sky Person scooped them up and carried them to her room, sitting with them on the bed. She held them both, until Bran fell asleep and Ana calmed to a tiny sniffling mess. She covered Bran with the furs on the bed, then gathered the toddler up close and carried her to the bathroom attached to her room to clean her up. When she went back to the bedroom, there was a knock on the door. “Enter,” she said, trying to stay quiet so she didn’t wake the boy curled up behind her.

It was Raven that knocked, looking pale, but otherwise okay. “Hey.”

“Hey. Are you- how is your head? They said you had hit it.” Natalie rubbed Ana’s back and went to the sofa that sat near the bed against the wall. 

“Ah, yeah, it’s uh, it’s okay. Hurts.” The mechanic shrugged, sitting next to Natalie and rubbing the back of her neck. “Um, listen, I-”

“It is not your fault,” Natalie interrupted, focusing on the little girl in her arms. “So do not apologize.”

Raven’s hand dropped to her lap. “I know. I fell before I could do anything to help, though. Anya, she uh, she pushed me back and I tripped over something, hit my head on a rock.” She glanced over, frowning. “When I woke up, I was in that room with the others.”

Natalie nodded, standing and carrying Ana to the bed. She laid her down next to her brother, making sure she was covered and then stacked pillows next to her so she wouldn’t roll off. Her heart panged as she did this, Noah should be lying here with them, not a bunch of pillows. She took a breath and kissed her children’s heads, then went back to the sofa and sat on the edge, a good few feet from Raven. She opened her mouth, as if to say something, then shook her head, slumping forward and burying her face in her hands. Raven scooted closer and laid her hand on her back. “Hey, it’ll be okay. We’ll get her back, we’ll get them all back.”

“No one has ever come back from the mountain, Rae. And those that do, are not themselves anymore.” Natalie leaned over against Raven, searching for a warmth that was not there. Feeling Raven there with her, even if she was not her wife, helped some. They stayed like that for a while, just sitting together quietly, listening to the even breathing of the two children on the bed.

There was a knock on the door again, and Natalie blinked her eyes open, sitting up. She immediately missed the feeling of Raven’s arms wrapped around her, but the knocking was insistent and not stopping, so she rubbed the sleep out of her eyes and stretched, standing. “Enter.”

_ “Goufakipa, moba,”  _ a handmaiden bowed her head, her braids trickling over her shoulders.  _ “Noa has woken up, I was sent to retrieve you.” _

_“Thank you,_ _Tinka,”_ Natalie breathed, waving at the girl to dismiss her. The redhead looked to the bed, not wanting to wake the younger children yet not wanting to leave them there alone.

“Go, I’ll stay here with them.” Raven had stood and was leaning against the arm of the sofa, her hands stuffed into the pockets of her jacket. The younger girl was abnormally still and quiet, and Natalie was a little worried. But she nodded and went to her, laying a kiss on the corner of the brunette’s lips.

“Thank you. Can you bring them when they wake, if it is not dark out? I will be back as soon as I can, I just need to check on her.” Natalie held onto Raven’s arms, looking up into her face. She really didn’t want to leave her, she felt as though the girl needed something, reassuring or comforting, but she wasn’t sure she was wanted, really.

Raven nodded, leaned down to kiss her properly, and then pushed her towards the door. “Yeah, go. We’ll be fine.”

Natalie rushed as fast as she could, heading down the flights of stairs, out into the street, and straight to the Healer’s House. She checked with the healer in the front room, then went to the room where her friends and child were staying. When she got in the room, she immediately went to her child’s side. “Noah! No, do not-”

_ “Nomi! I am sorry, I- I tried to- I could not-”  _ the girl blubbered, pushing herself up to throw her arms around the redhead. Noah was openly sobbing now, her cheeks spotted red, snot draining from her nose. She pressed her face into Natalie’s chest as she clung to her.  _ “Nomi! Nomi!”  _

“Shhhhh,  _ it is alright, I got you. You are safe, you are going to be okay, my child.”  _ Natalie held her close, stroking her hair. She was trying to be conscious of the girl’s wounds, but Noah herself was clutching her tightly, as if she couldn’t feel them. She climbed onto the bed and pulled her daughter into her lap, keeping the stroking steady as she whispered reassurances in her ear. She rocked them both, her own tears wetting the girl’s hair. 

She hated feeling so helpless, not able to help her child other than to whisper reassurances in her ear, not able to-

She  _ could,  _ though. She could help Anya. She could go and infiltrate the mountain, get in and get her out, maybe some others. If she was still- But she could, theoretically. 

But she could not just leave. She had these children to look after, she had family that would actually miss her she- 

She couldn’t repeat past mistakes. She couldn’t just keep jumping into things with the knowledge that she could die, she had so much more to lose now. 

She tightened her grip on Noah just a little bit, looking over to watch Octavia hover between Lincoln and Bellamy. She watched Tris sleep, her face pinched in pain. She watched Solan flirt with the healer by his side, making the man blush. She watched Ron try to lie still while they worked at cleaning the gash in his chest for what might be the tenth time since the group made it to the House. She watched as Cally watched Ron, her face like stone while her eyes betrayed the worry she held for her  _ houmon _ . 

Natalie wanted to do something to help them all, but she couldn’t, so she held her child closely and prayed to the Spirits that somehow, some way, her wife would come home.


	2. Chapter 2

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I realize it's been awhile since I've updated this, thank you all for being patient! Just so you know, if you're into this and worried I won't finish it, I will. It's just taking longer than I thought it would. So much is planned for this, and I'm looking forward to diverging completely from canon and making this into my own story to tell! Hopefully I can get it out right... 
> 
> So, without further ado (what does that even mean, though??) have the first actual chapter of Adjusting to Realitly, the sequel to Adapting to the Ground!
> 
> (Kudos and comments welcome and fuel my motivation.)

** **Earth; Mount Weather cages, sometime in October, 2149** **

Everything was wrong. This was not… she wasn’t supposed to be here. She was bringing the remaining survivors of Skaikru back to Polis. She was supposed to be home now, in the arms of her wife, watching her adopted children play. She was supposed to be trying to find a way to convince her wife that the two of them should properly court Raven. She was supposed to be in the Tower, talking to Heda about the inevitable invasion of the people of Natalie’s first home. She was supposed to be training Tris, teaching her the ways of the gona.

Everything hurt. All she knew now was pain. She had no concept of time, she had no idea how long she’d been in the cage. She only knew that she wasn’t alone. She was surrounded by people, her people, all caged, all in pain, all weak.

They got only enough food to survive, not enough to stave off the hunger that had settled. They got just enough water to stay hydrated, but not nearly enough to chase the thirst away. If they stopped moving, the Maunon came and took them away. If they moved too much, the Maunon came and took them away. More often than not, the Maunon came and hung one of them up on some hooks, putting tubes into them, and bled them as dry as they could without killing them. Only, sometimes it still killed them.

Anya stayed quiet, watching it all, trying to learn the schedules of the people with guns. Trying to determine when would be best to attack and get her people out. It was proving difficult; the times they appeared seemed to be at random, and it was hard to tell how long they stayed and when they switched with no way to tell what time of the day or night it was.

When Clarke came for her, she tried to argue, tried to convince the Sky Girl to free her people as well, but she brought up a good point; they were all too weak, and they couldn’t risk getting caught. So she left, following the blonde through corridors, through tunnels. She despaired at the pile of bodies they found in the cart, one a mere boy, still alive. She held in her grief as she whispered to him, snapping his neck. “Yu gonplei ste odon.”

She tried to find her own way out, sure that she could, that she knew better, but came to multiple dead ends before she finally just turned back and searched for her rescuer. She found her -almost ran her over- along with guards with guns. They ran as far and as fast as they could, and when they came to an opening, the only escape route they had found so far, she didn’t hesitate to jump into the river below. She prayed to the spirits that either she would make it home or be returned to them. She prayed that the girl had followed her, rather than let herself get caught, because death had to be better than that.

Anya swam to shore as soon as she got her bearings, and she found Clarke floating along, almost drowning. She pulled the blonde out and woke her up, and they set out back to Polis. They were followed, even when they hid their scents the Maunon found them again, and Clarke found where they had put a piece of tek in her arm. She didn’t bother with trying to find something sharp; she sunk her teeth into her skin and ripped the damn thing out, ignoring the copper tang of her own blood.

They started walking, heading back east towards home, stopping only to sleep when it was too dark to travel through the woods and to eat what they found.

 

** **Earth; Raven’s room, sometime in October, 2149** **

Raven wrung out her hair as she padded her way to the radio that sat on the table by her bed, rushing a little to catch whoever was squawking at her through the radio. She had thought she’d had time to clean up a little after spending the night with Natalie, but apparently she’d taken too long.

“ **Ark to Earth, come in Raven, are you there?** ” Abby’s voice cut through the static, and the brunette scooped the device up and pressed the button.

“Hey, sorry, I was in the bathroom. What’s up?” She sat down in the chair that had been provided and moved around a little to let the light from the window shine on the mess of wires and tech that sat on the table. She was trying to rig up a video monitor and camera so they could communicate with the Council better.

“ **There’s bathrooms down there?** ” Abby sounded incredulous and Raven rolled her eyes.

“Well, yeah, they’re not barbarians.” Sure they did things differently than the people on the Ark, but when you really looked, they were essentially the same. They just had to adapt to their situation and surroundings, the same as the Arkers. Abby scoffed and Raven rolled her eyes again, rubbing at her forehead. “Doc, why are you calling so early?”

“ **It’s almost noon, Raven,** ”  was the reply.

“Oh. I must have stayed in Nat’s room longer than I thought,” the mechanical mumbled, inspecting a circuit board closely. She had been staying with Natalie since she woke up in the infirmary, just being near her. They never went beyond cuddling, neither really even up to anything else. Not that they could have done anything anyway, with Bran and Ana always snuggling their way in between them to seek comfort from their adoptive mother.

She deemed the circuit board usable and added it to a nearby pile, picking up some wiring to scrutinize.

“ **Have you had any contact with Clarke?** ”

Raven sighed and set the wiring in her ‘useless’ pile. “No, Abby, I told you. They were taken, the people in the Mountain are not allies.”

“ **Maybe she’s hurt, not able to-** ”

“Abby!” Raven slammed her hand down on the table to cut the doctor off, scowling. “They are monsters! They kidnap people and kill people, they are not our friends!” Ever since the group had been taken a week before, Abby had been needling at Raven for more information than she knew, and seemed to refuse to accept that the people in Mount Weather were enemies. The brunette was getting frustrated with explaining over and over how the people in the mountain had been terrorizing the Grounders for centuries. She’d heard the stories, most from Anya herself, who’d fought the creatures the Mountain Men seemed to control somehow. She’d seen them, up close, smelled death on their breath.

“ **I’m sure those Grounders are just exaggerating, Raven-** ” Abby started, and Raven had half a mind to shut the radio off and feign interference.

“No, they’re not, okay? I’ve seen it myself. I was there when they were taken.” The mechanic gripped the piece of tech she had picked up hard, focusing on the sting of the metal digging into her palm. “If it hadn’t been for An- if it hadn’t been for one of the Grounders,” she ground out, deciding that the Council didn’t need to know names, “I’d be either dead or with them. She knocked me out of the way when one of those Mt. Weather bastards tried to shoot me.” There was silence on the other side, finally, and Raven sighed, rubbing the back of her neck with the hand that wasn’t holding onto the metal. “Look, Doc, I wish I could tell you different. I really do. Those bastards, and those monsters that they somehow control, they are scary. They are cruel. Abby, they even tried to kill kids. They’re eleven and ten. They didn’t hesitate to shoot them down.” She spoke insistently, trying to get the woman to understand, her voice shaking just a little at mentioning Noah and Tris; she’d become quite attached to the former and had been getting to know the latter before they’d gone to the Dropship.

Abby was silent for a moment longer, and when she next spoke, it was just above a whisper. “ **Just, contact me if you hear from Clarke.** ” The radio disconnected, and she was left in the relative silence of her room.

Raven sighed and tossed the piece of metal into the useless pile, hissing when her palm stung. There was a cut across it, not deep by any means, but painful. She swore under her breath and stared at it for a moment, her jaw clenched. She should probably get it looked at, but she also needed to get the video monitor built. She tore a strip of her shirt, thankful it was one of her old ones and not one that had been given to her, and wrapped her hand up before going back to work. 

 

****Earth; Heda’s chambers, sometime in October, 2149****

Lexa ran a hand down her face, allowing herself just one moment of weakness while she was alone. Even though the sun was sinking, this moment wouldn’t be able to last long. There was always something to interrupt her private time, always some issue or debate or dispute. So she took this rare slice of solitude to sag a little, to sulk in her mind, to succumb to her fatigue.

The last couple of days have been harrowing and frustrating. Usually, when someone was taken by the Maunon, she was able to adjust quickly. This time, she kept catching herself almost calling for a guard to bring her her General or the leader of the Skaikru, Klark. She understood her slip up with Onya, mostly, even though she was loathe to admit she cared for the woman who had trained her as a child and who now still acted as mentor and friend. But this refusal to admit that the mysterious, beautiful Sky Girl was gone was grating on her nerves.

She couldn’t understand why she was so weirdly attached to this girl. It wasn’t because she was from the sky, not exactly. Natali was from the sky too, and Lexa wasn’t that attached to her. Klark wasn’t any different, really.

It’s not that she wouldn’t care if Natali was the one who had been taken. She would be just as upset, the fayagada was one of her people, and had become a sort of friend during her time in Polis. At the same time, however, she wouldn’t be pacing and worrying nonstop about the woman like she’s found herself worrying about the blonde leader.

She started pacing, reciting the things she’d learned from Titus as a novitiate. “ _The dead are gone, the living are hungry._ ” But she didn’t know if she- they were dead. Sh- they could be alive, for all she knew, captured.

She counted her steps, brow furrowed. One, two, three, four, five, six, seven. Turn. Repeat. Over and over, her mind working.

“ _Look at the bigger picture, Lexa,_ ” he’d once lectured, standing over her as she tried to strategize for the fake war he had created on paper. “ _The details won’t matter in the long run._ ” But here, the details were important. Weren’t they?

“ _Love is weakness._ ” That one made her freeze, the phrase she’d heard repeated almost nonstop since she could remember. Because if you had love, you had something that could be used against you. Like the wolf pup she’d had as a child. Like Kostia.

She didn’t love the Sky Girl. She didn’t even know her.

That didn’t mean there wasn’t potential.

She shook herself to dislodge her train of thought and stood up straight in front of her throne when the doors were thrown open, Indra striding in with her usual scowl. “ _Heda._ ” She bowed her head in deference, her movements stiff.  

“ _What is it, Indra?_ ” Lexa straightened her posture even more and put her hands behind her back to keep from fidgeting, her face once more stoic.

“ _The scouts saw something falling from the sky,_ ” the warrior announced, her eyes flickering just slightly towards the open balcony behind where Heda stood. " _They report that it looks like when the Skaikru fell._ "

Lexa refrained from reacting, sucking in a deep breath through her nose. She nodded once, a frown on her face. " _Gather a new scouting group, including Natali, and send them to see what it is. It might be more of her people._ "

Indra studied the young woman for a moment before nodding and turning to leave.

 

** **Earth; the Healing House, sometime in October, 2149** **

Noa hurt everywhere, but it was less than it had been. Even though it had tasted really disgusting, she had drank the tea the healers had given her, every last drop.

She didn’t know how long she’d been there, stuck in a cot with fisas fussing around her. She knew that Natali, Bran, and Ana came to visit a lot, but she couldn’t tell if it was just daily, or more than that, or less than that. Sometimes Reivon visited too, bringing whatever little tek she was working on and explaining it to her. She didn’t understand most of what the Skaiyon was saying, but she was stuck in that cot for the moment, so she listened.

Her wounds were healing, just slower than she’d like. There were a lot, she was kind of surprised she was awake.

“ _Noa, are you ready to leave here and come back home?_ ” her Nomi asked, sitting down on the edge of her cot. She brushed her fingers on Noa’s cheek, and her fingers were cool and soft, and the girl closed her eyes and sighed. Natali had not been her mother for long, and sometimes it was very clear, but most times, like now, she forgot she hadn't always been Natali's child.

“ _Yes, Nomi. I don’t like being stuck here._ ”

And with that, she was being carried out of the Healing house and back into the Tower. She was set up in a bed in her mothers' room, told to stay put, and then promptly wrapped up in blankets and furs. For the next couple of days, Natali tended to her when she wasn't tending to the Natblidas or her younger siblings, making sure she continued to heal and that she was comfortable. Reivon would sit with her too, always fiddling with some sort of tek and telling her stories about when her Nomi was a goufa.

Then her Nomi started to pack some things. Noa was starting to get out of bed daily, doing indoor training sessions for a few hours a day, gaining her strength back. She was still injured, but it wasn't as bad as before. She set down her practice sword when she noticed Natali folding some things and stuffing them into a bag, a scowl on her face. " _Nomi?_ "

" _I have been ordered to go on a scouting mission,_ " she explained, glancing over at the young warrior. " _Something fell from the sky._ "

" _Another pod like yours? Or a ship like the Skaiyons?_ " Noa tilted her head, her brow furrowing.

" _Possibly. They do not know for sure, the scouts who saw it fall were not close enough to tell._ " The redhead smiled a little and finished her packing. " _I will be back in a few days-_ "

" _Take her with you,_ " Talia interrupted from the door, her face severe like usual. She stood just outside the room, her arms crossed over her chest.

" _Excuse me?_ " Natali raised her brows, turning to face Noa's Fos with her hands on her hips. Noa sat down on the edge of the bed she'd been sleeping in for the last few days, chewing on her lip. She never understood why these two fought so much, always at each other's throats. She thought maybe it had something to do with Leina's disappearance, though she could never get either of them to talk about it.

" _She needs the experience, and it will be a good way to get her back on her feet,_ " Talia argued, her jaw clenched.

" _I do not think that is such a good idea, these people are-_ "

" _Your people, you mean._ "

Noa gulped at the murderous look on her adoptive mother's face, getting antsy. Usually her other mother would step in and break them up before their arguments got too heated, but-

" _They are not anymore, you know that,_ " Natali sneered, her hands dropping to her sides as she clenched them into fists.

" _And yet Heda expects you to find out what they are doing here and what they want. How do you expect them to cooperate if they find out you are no longer one of them?_ "

" _I do not, I am not being sent to negotiate. It is a scouting mission._ " Natali turned back to her bag, stuffing a few more items in, and Noah started fiddling with the fur her fingers were resting on.

" _All the more reason to take Noa,_ " Talia argued. " _It is the best way to get her back into-_ "

" _She was not doing missions before!_ " Natali turned again, abandoning her bag and sweeping in to glare in Talia's face. Noa thought she saw the glint of a blade in her mother's hand, but wasn't sure. " _You expect me to send my injured child out to a people I know can be violent without much provocation?_ " She stepped closer, and that was a blade, now pressed against Noa's First's throat. " _So that I risk losing my wife_ and _my child?!_ "

Noa was stunned. She hadn't thought about it that way, and she knows Talia hadn't much either, by the way the woman's eyes widened.

" _I am sorry, Natali, I did not think of it that way._ " Talia's words were soft, and after a moment and to Noa's (and Talia's) relief, Natali backed off, re-sheathing the knife she'd pulled out.

Natali ran her hands over her face, shaking her head and sighing heavily. Noa stayed where she was, watching to see how it would play out; usually her nomon was the one to calm her nomi down. She'd never seen the redhead calm herself down before.

" _No, you were thinking of ways to strengthen your Seken,_ " Natali muttered, turning once more to the bag that was almost full. " _I understand that, but you must understand me as well. She is my child, and she is injured, and I just lost her other mother, I cannot-_ "

" _I will go._ " Noa gulped when both women spun to stare at her, but she kept her ground, pushing off the bed to stand up straight. Her pains were only aches now, they weren't as bad as before, and she knew that if she was injured while out doing missions or fighting or whatever happened to be in store for her, she wouldn't have the time to rest and heal. " _Talia is right, Nomi, I need to know how to push myself and I need the experience._ "

" _Noa-_ "

" _Please? If I cannot handle a simple scouting mission while my muscles ache a little, how can I protect you and Bran and Ana? Since Nomon is not here, it is my duty to step up._ " Noa looked up into her mother's face, trying to convince her that she was ready for this. Nomi was not a warrior. A hunter, maybe, but she was not trained for battle like Nomon, like Noa. It was now Noa's job to take care of her Nomi, brother, and sister.

" _Noa, you do not need to-_ " Natali shook her head as her eyes watered, cupping Noa's cheeks in her hands. " _It is not your duty to replace your Nomon._ "

Noa bit her lip as her mother's voice cracked, raising her own, smaller hands to rest on the ones on her cheeks. " _I know that, but I need to. Not replace her, but I need to protect you, Nomi._ "

Natali's gaze softened, and she pressed her lips to Noa's forehead. " _Alright. Pack a bag._ "

 

** **Earth; Polis, sometime in October, 2149** **

Natalie was leading the procession on the way out of Polis to head towards the thing that had fallen from the sky. She had Noah beside her, and Octavia, Drane, and Dex following with   two other scouts behind her. A smaller group was easier to hide.

There was a commotion at the gate when they got there, and Natalie was forced to stop her trek when people crowded around the opening. She pushed her way through, then came face-to-face with two very dirty, exhausted looking faces. She gaped for a minute before calling out to whoever was listening behind her. “ _Get Naikou, get the Heda! Tell her the general and the Skai princess are back!_ ” She reached forward and wrapped her arm around Anya, pulling her the rest of the way through the gate, and someone moved to assist Clarke.

The redhead was having trouble processing things. The Maunon had taken them, how could they be here? No one survived the Mountain.

She held onto her wife tight as they made their way through the streets back towards the Tower, staying silent and feeling a rage burn through her at the frailness of her wife's body. The only way a person's body felt this bony was if they weren't being fed enough.

Halfway to the Tower, the group was met with a steely faced Commander, her head held up high and questions in her eyes. She silently directed them to follow her to the Healing house, and Natalie was too focused on Anya to really register the worry in the leader's gaze. Nyko met them at the door and lead them in and up to a private room, shooing away everyone that wasn't family or the Commander. Natalie sent Noah with Octavia to find Bran and Ana, then went to Anya's side, looking her over, Raven right beside her and looking just as worried as Natalie felt. When Natalie had tried to send Raven away too, the younger woman had glared at her and pushed around her to get at Anya.

Even seeing Anya right there in front of her, Natalie was having trouble processing things. She was sure her brain was playing tricks on her, but then, Heda and Nyko were right there, seeing what she was. Still, she refused to believe that her wife was back with her until Anya reached out and gripped her wrist. Natalie was instantly torn between being gentle to her obviously injured wife, and kissing her senseless.

"Anya, how are you, how," Natalie couldn't get the words past her throat, her voice thick with unshed tears. "I thought I lost you," she whispered, gripping Anya's arm with one hand and the back of her neck with the other. She pressed her forehead to Anya's, her lips barely brushing over her's. She had enough of a mind to shift and include Raven when Anya pulled at her too, and Natalie clung to the both of them.

"I am alright, Niron." Anya clutched tightly at Natalie's arm and Raven's shirt, too weak to lift her arms to embrace her wife and lover properly. "Clarke found me and saved me."

Anya and Clarke then spent the next half hour or so going over everything they had been through. By the time they were done, Lexa was pacing the length of the room, Raven was slotted on the bed next to Anya and holding tightly to her and Natalie's hands, and Natalie was feeling quite ill. The way her people were being treated, the neglect and abuse and. And the way the kids from the Ark were being spoiled was suspiscious, but that could just be her anger from the way the Kyongedon were being treated.

Finally, after quite a bit of pacing and silence, Lexa dismissed everyone. She helped Clarke out and escorted her to the Tower herself, leaving Anya to the care of her wife and lover.

Natalie and Raven quietly walked alongside Anya as they made their way to Natalie and Anya's room, paying close attention to the injured warrior but not making it obvious that she was weaker than normal. The trek was slow-going, and they took their time and ended up making look like a normal stroll through the halls of the Tower. They talked quietly, Raven updating the both of them on her progress with the tech and Natalie updating Anya on Noah's health and Bran and Ana's progress in their training and studies. Anya told them a little more about the Mountain, about the cages and the treatment and the absolute disgusting condition of the space the people are being kept in.

After all this, no one knew what to say after, so they continued the walk to their room quietly, each lost in their own thoughts.


	3. Chapter 3

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> A small discussion between Natalie and Anya concerning Raven, and the Exodus Ship crashes to Earth, with an unpleasant surprise onboard.

**Earth; Polis Tower, Natalie and Anya's room, sometime in October, 2149**

Natalie had spent the day with the Natblidas, tutoring and mentoring while Titus tutted from the back of the room with his usual scowl. Noah, Bran, and Ana joined them for awhile, but then Noah was called to Talia's side for training and the younger two wandered off to find their other mother.

Now all three children were sitting at the table in the room with Raven while the mechanic sorted through a pile of scrapped tech, chattering with her and trying to follow along with what she was saying. Anya was resting in bed, bandaged up and pale, but already looking much better than the day before when she and Clarke had wandered back into Polis. Natalie was sitting on the edge of the bed, folding their clean clothes in order to give her hands something to do.

The folding was methodical, constant, and just enough to keep her mind from wandering to dark places. She was so focused on the task, she jumped when a hand gently grabbed her wrist.

"Sorry," Anya apologized with a smirk, pulling Natalie's hand closer to her and kissing it. "You are jumpy."

"My mind was elsewhere," Natalie admitted with a sheepish smile, tangling her fingers with Anya's.

Anya hummed, absentmindedly tracing a small scar on Natalie's hand with her thumb. "Niron, there is something I need to talk to you about. It was one of the things I could not stop thinking about when I was in that cage." Natalie flinched at the reminder of the mountain, but nodded, turning her entire focus on her wife. "It is about Raven."

Natalie glanced over at the woman that was laughing with her children, watching as Bran wrinkled his nose at something she had said. Natalie was worried, and she couldn't pin exactly why. On one hand, what if Anya was going to say she didn't want anything more to do with Raven? Or maybe she wanted to make this arrangement they had with her more permanent? Although that actually sounded really good and amazing. But maybe it was-

"Fayagada, focus." Anya's voice snapped Natalie out of her mini spiral, and her brow was raised when she looked back. "It is not bad, I promise." Natalie licked her lips and nodded again. "I know you have feelings for her, deeper than just familial." Anya must have seen something in her face, because she smiled and pulled her closer. Natalie had to move quickly to adjust, snuggling into her wife's side, before she fell completely on top of her. "It is alright, I do too. Raven is..." she stopped, shaking her head with a smile.

Natalie pulled away to look at Anya, eyes wide. "Raven is?"

Anya looked down at her, having been watching the subject of their conversation. "I do not have the words, exactly." Her brow furrowed as she thought, and Natalie shifted to lean up and kiss her with a smile. Anya smiled into the kiss, cupping her cheek, before pulling back. "I think it is like that pastry you like so much. The one with the sweet bread? You and I are the sugar and bread. Raven is the sticky sauce you drizzle on top. You don't have to have the sauce to eat the sweet bread, but it makes it better."

Natalie hummed thoughtfully, snuggling back into Anya's side and turned her focus back on Raven and the children. She almost busted out laughing at the sight of all four of them making a face, their cheeks puffed out and lips pursed. Natalie knew that face, having done it with Raven and Finn, and even Octavia, when they were children themselves, and she knew Raven's eyes were crossed as well. Noah was holding the face steadily with a crease of concentration on her brow, Bran had one hand on his mouth to keep the air in, and Ana was giggling too much to succeed.

Natalie shook her head at their antics and chewed on her lip for a minute. "Are you saying Raven makes us better?"

"Yes." The certainty in her wife's voice sent thrills down Natalie's spine, and she grinned. "I am saying that we are good as just you and I, but Raven makes us even better. She, what is the expression? She completes us."

Natalie held back a snort. "Where did you even hear that?" She moved to look up at Anya, still grinning. "That is so cheesy. But I understand what you are saying." Anya looked down at her, a brow raised. Natalie just shook her head. "I agree."

The resulting smile on Anya's face was so bright, Natalie could feel the warmth of it on her face. Then Anya's expression became a little pensive, and Natalie blinked up at her at the sudden seriousness. "I think we should properly court her."

Natalie kept her amusement at the really old fashioned expression at bay, her heart thundering in her chest. "You want to, you want-" She couldn't even get the words out, she was so excited.

"I want her to be our partner, yes." Anya's smile softened. "If the children are permissible, of course."

Natalie raised a brow and looked over to the couch where the children were still sitting with Raven. Ana had crawled into the mechanic's lap, and Bran and Noah sat close to her side. "If you doubt our children like her, we will talk to them before we talk to Raven." Anya's answering smile was bright and full of love, and Natalie couldn't help herself as she leaned over, capturing her wife's lips with her own.  
  


**Earth; Polis Tower, map room, sometime in October, 2149**

Natalie stood off to the side, her hands behind her back, as she watched the Commander pace along the floor. Raven leaned against a table in the middle of the large room, her palms flat on the surface as she studied a hand drawn map, Clarke right next to her. Anya stood on Raven's other side, pointing at a few spots and muttering. Indra and Gustus stood near the door, stoically watching as their Heda walked. Titus stood nearby with his trademark scowl and glares aimed at the two Skaikru.

Natalie wasn't sure why she was there. She was technically just the goufakipa, the caretaker of the children in the Tower. She had no real influence on what went on unless it directly affected her charges. Still, Heda had requested for her presence in this meeting, so there she was.

"If the group is as small as your scouts say it is, it can't be the entire Ark," Clarke was saying, her brows furrowed as she studied the map. She was still a bit beat up from her and Anya's run from the Maunon, but there was color in her cheeks and a determination in her gaze that seemed to impress the warriors in the room. She turned to Raven with a frown. "Did m- did the Council say anything about sending anyone else down?"

Raven shook her head and took one hand off the table to fiddle with a radio she had sitting next to her. It was a short-range, one she and Natalie had fixed up; the scouts had its mate with them. "No, she- they just wanted to know what was going on down here. They don't believe that the men in the mountain are the enemy. They think we made a mistake in trusting the Commander and her people."

Clarke shook her head in obvious annoyance, running a hand through her hair. "Anything else?"

"Yeah," Raven breathed out, standing up straight to glance at Natalie as well. "The Doc was saying something about Sinclair maybe finding a way to recycle the oxygen for a bit longer. I haven't heard the details yet, Sinclair is supposed to contact the radio later so we can talk."

The room was filled with a sort of heavy silence as they took in this information. If the Council did not send down the people that had fallen, then who did, and why were they there?

The radio crackled to life as the group stood and pondered, making the warriors jump slightly in surprise. " **Raven, you there?** "

Natalie turned her attention to the radio at Bellamy's voice, unaware the man had gone with the scouts. Raven grabbed the radio up quickly, pressing the button to respond. "Yeah, Bell, what's up?" She released the button, then pushed it a second later. "Over."

Natalie stepped closer to hear the conversation better. “ **It's Diana Sydney**."

"What? What are you talking about, Bellamy?" Clarke had snatched the radio from Raven and was now scowling into it as if the man on the other end of the connection could see it and be compelled to speak faster.

" **Diana Sydney is the one leading these people.** " There was a silence, and then in a low voice, Bellamy spoke again. " **And one more thing: David Campbell is there too.** "

Natalie felt the color drain from her face at the mention of her father, and Anya and Raven were both instantly at her side, guiding her to a chair. Lexa looked at Clarke with obvious confusion, then turned her gaze on the three partners when Clarke shrugged, equally as confused. "Who is this David Campbell?"

Before Natalie could answer, Raven did so, her voice laced with the venom of hatred. "He's the man that contributed to her birth."

"This is a bad thing?" Lexa asked, tilting her head just a little.

"Not in itself, no, but-" Raven started, but was interrupted by Bellamy.

" **He was abusive to her when we were kids.** "

The storm of anger that took over Lexa's face was a mere shadow compared to the rage on Anya's. Raven's next scoffed statement only made the anger worse. "He beat her up until the day she left. Honestly, I'm not surprised she stole the pod."

"It is no big deal," Natalie mumbled, still reeling from the fact that her father was on the ground now, alive, and within traveling distance. "It was because he was always drinking, and I irritated him."

"It is a big deal, Nat." Raven gripped Natalie's shoulders with steel in her voice. "You didn't deserve that."

Natalie looked up, wanting to believe her, knowing she was right, but still having some trouble. "I know. But-"

" **We can discuss the asshole later. Right now we need to worry about their plans. They've been bent over some sort of map for a few hours, pointing in the direction of the Mountain.** " Bellamy interrupted Natalie, and she was grateful.

Natalie sat back and let the leaders in the room discuss this new problem, until she heard someone say something about sending an army to intercept these new Sky people. Natalie squirmed in her seat, disagreeing but knowing better than to speak out. Luckily (or unluckily, depending on perspective), the Commander noticed her fidgeting and lifted her chin. "Speak, Natalie."

Natalie blinked and felt her cheeks heat a little. "Well, I think it might be a bit much to send an army straight away. Even if they have come down as rebels against the Council, sending an army could give them the impression that we are hostile. Maybe a small group should go intercept, and if they do not listen, then we could call on the radio for the army?"

The room was quiet then, and Natalie grew nervous. The Heda seemed to be contemplating Natalie's suggestion, Anya looked a bit proud, Indra looked skeptical, Gustus was his usual stoic self, and Titus looked annoyed and angry. Clarke and Raven were nodding and mumbling. "I do have another radio built and ready to go, but it's short range so the two radios won't work if they're too far apart," Raven told everyone, rubbing at her temple with one hand while she left the other on Natalie's shoulder.

"It might benefit us to do all we can to avoid conflict with them." Natalie shrugs, smiling at Raven when the mechanic squeezed her shoulder. When she looked to the others, she was vaguely surprised to see them all accept that she had a point. Indra and Titus were still scowling, but they didn't look like they were about to argue.

Lexa nodded once, crossing her arms over her chest as she continued her pacing. "You have a point."

Natalie found it slightly amusing that Titus started spluttering, his face turning a funny shade of red as he threw glares over his shoulder. "Heda, why are you listening to this Skaiyon?"

"She is not Skaikru, Titus, she is Trikru." Lexa seemed almost angry as she spoke, dropping her hands and holding them behind her back again. "You were there at her adoption festival."

Natalie reached up as they spoke to the tribal tattoo that was etched along her right jaw, the markings she got when she was officially adopted into Trigeda. She held back the annoyance she felt at Titus's continuous argument that she wasn't Trikru, even after all this time. Hadn't she proven herself, time and time again? She moved her hand to grip onto Raven's, squeezing for a moment before she stood. "I am going to go and check on the children. If that is alright, Heda."

Lexa nodded and stepped to the side, allowing Natalie to leave the room. Natalie bowed her head and shut the door behind her before heading towards the stairs to climb up to the room the children should be in.

She found all the Natblida in the room they share, along with her own three. The littlest five Nightbloods brightened as soon as Natalie slipped in through the door, and Kal and Ace slammed into her legs along with Ana. She scooped Ana up and set her on her hip before wrapping her arm around the other two as best as she could. She was instantly surrounded by the rest, all chattering and tugging at her and pulling her towards the couches that sat in the middle of the room.

"Alright alright, I'm coming." She laughed, sitting down and setting Ana in her lap. Kal and Ace sat on either side of her, Zuri next to Ace and Lillia and Faye next to Kal. Aden, Ren, Tara, Brianni, and Rye all gathered around her feet, sitting on the floor. Noah sat on the back of the couch Natalie was sitting on, and Bran joined the kids on the floor.

She spent hours with them, chattering about whatever they wanted to chatter about. The usual complaints about Titus slipped in, of course, and they marvelled at Anya and the Skai Prisa surviving the mountain.

By the time lunch rolled around, Natalie was in a much better mood.   
  


**Earth; Near the Exodus ship crash site, sometime in October, 2149**

Five days after the discussion in the map room, Natalie hid with her wife, bothers, oldest daughter, and a handful of scouts a few hundred meters from the crash sight. They were up in the trees to the west, between the crash sight and the mountain, watching the people that had fallen from the Ark wander around and prepare for an expedition. Bellamy and the few scouts that had been with him before were spread out on the ground out of sight with Clarke, stationed to the east. Their plan was to wait and watch to see if the rebels from the Ark really planned to go to Mount Weather, and to interfere if they did. It was too dangerous to allow them to make contact, and the fools would surely get themselves killed.

It wasn't too long before a group started making their way towards the mountain, led by David Campbell. Sort of. He was clearly ill, his skin gaunt and pale, and he staggered just a little.

Natalie curled her lip as she watched the group walk from beneath her hood. “Alcohol withdrawal,” she mumbled, jumping silently to the ground. She stood and stalked forward, her hands held out to the sides to show she was unarmed. The group dropped down around her, their footfalls as silent as hers, and Natalie led them forward. She lifted her hands higher when several people from the Ark raised their guns. “We do not come to fight, we come to stop you from getting yourselves killed.”

In response, there were multiple clicks as most of the Arkru flipped off the safety of their guns. David stepped forward, his eyes bloodshot and his hair stringy from lack of washing. “Why should we believe a bunch of savages?”

Natalie took a breath and slowly lifted her hands to her hood, lowering it to reveal her face. She had opted to paint it like the others; black warpaint outlined her eyes and stretched down her nose on either side and continued over her lips, down to her chin. “For one, you would be dead already if we came to kill you.”

Shock passed over David's face before a sneer stretched his lips. “So you lived. And became one of them.” The disgust was clear in his voice as he spoke, his eyes wandering over Natalie and her entourage.

Natalie pushed down her immediate response to flinch, straightening her shoulders. She heard heavy footsteps make their way towards her and stop on either side, and knew she was now flanked by her adoptive brothers. She lifted her chin and lowered her hands to her sides, deciding to ignore his statement. “Will you go back willingly or do we have to use force?”

David scoffed, waving his gun at Natalie and her brothers. “What’re you gonna do, throw sticks at us?”

Natalie sneered and drew her sword, brandishing it in front of her. “We will fight you if we have to, but I suggest you make the smart choice and stand down.”

Of course it wouldn't go that easily. No sooner had Natalie uttered those words, than did David lift his weapon and aim for her chest. The only thing that kept him from firing was a dagger embedding itself in his arm, making him drop the gun and clutch at his new wound with a cry. There was static and a barked “zog em raun!”, and then warriors flooded the area with a yell. There was the rapport of gunfire mixed with the clangs of swords making purchase, the cries of the wounded as they were struck down, and then it was over as quickly as it had started.

Natalie herself stood over the man that had been her father, her face void of emotion as she held her blade to his throat. While she was unscathed save for a new cut across her temple, he was bloodied and battered, holding his arm to his chest as he stared up at her. His face was hard, but she saw the fear in his eyes as she pressed her sword into his flesh just a little.

A quick glance around told Natalie that the warriors had the Arkers at sword-point, kneeling on the ground. Then movement near the metal ship caught her eye, and she turned her head to watch as more people poured out of the contraption. Another sword joined Natalie’s, so she pulled back and sheathed it, crouching to tie her father's wrists together. Then she stepped back and turned to face Diana Sydney as she stepped up with a scowl.

“What is the meaning of this? Who are you?” Sydney looked over the warriors with a furrowed brow.

Natalie swallowed the anxiety that bubbled in her gut and stood straight again. There was a thump as Anya kicked David to the ground, and then the general was beside Natalie with a scowl of her own. Anya stood close to Natalie, but didn't touch her. “You alright?”

Natalie nodded once, staring Sydney down. “Yes.” Then she stepped away from Anya and stalked closer to the ex Council member. She stood quietly and kept her gaze on Sydney, watching from the corner of her eye as Bellamy and Clarke came forward.

There was a flash of recognition in Sydney's eyes. “Ah, Clarke Griffin. I should have known you’d be like your mother; defiant and stubborn.” Clarke shifted on her feet at the sneer on the woman's face, frowning deeply. “What do you want?”

“To save your life,” Clarke told her, her eyebrows furrowing. Sydney scoffed, and Clarke crossed her arms. “We know you're planning on going to Mount Weather. There's nothing there for you, just a bunker full of selfish people who'd rather use others to aid themselves than to aid a bunch of newbies from space."

From the look on Syndey's face, she didn't believe Clarke even a little.


End file.
